Making Meaningful Photographs
PLUS! I want to send you a Mystery Postcard Poem!
Double Negative Dispatch Issue #91
During COVID, I would go to these business networking events that would take place at a restaurant’s outdoor patio where everyone was social-distanced. The format of the event was that a business would pitch an idea and get feedback from the other businesses around. During this time, it was a balm to the most isolating time to be out trying to work for myself.
One Wednesday, I got to speak about my project at the time, The Small Town Photo Project. Essentially, I was creating a library of images that businesses could order custom on canvas or aluminum for their office walls for a waiting room lobby or wherever. The photos focused on the landmarks of growing small towns, and I was going to businesses in towns where I had built up a decent amount of photos.
There was another photographer there, a wedding photographer, and they raised their hand to ask a question. I don’t remember what the question was, because all I heard was the belittlement of the way they labeled me. In front of God and everyone, they called me a stock photographer.
The Small Town Photo Project wasn’t stock photography. It had so much of my life at the time wrapped up in it AND it was a challenge to myself to shoot photos in a way that might encourage people to actually buy prints.
Ok…so…it was basically glorified stock photography.
Granted, it was super custom and specific and something no one was doing at the time (tbh I still don’t see any other photographers selling 40 to 180 inch prints to local offices in small towns). But the process of making these images sometimes became factory work much like stock photography. I had a process for shooting the photos where I’d aim to get X-amount of sunset shots of a certain landmark bridge in different crops and permutations. I had a style guide.
BUT it was also a body of work that I’m super proud of. Ultimately, what I wanted was to replace the old out of date art in a doctor’s office, so that one day, 30 years from now, my photos could be the old out of date ones that people complain about. The elements and workflow resembled stock photography, but there was a ton of meaning and exploration wrapped up in each piece.
People get me all wrong. On the outside, it looks like I’m just flaky, jumping from one lily pad to another. But I’ve always been doing the same thing. My career is based in projects. There’s something I’m curious about or something I want to dig into, and I try to see how I can push photography in a different way. And often, I’ll dedicate myself to that project for a year, two years, or 3+ years at a time.
I want to make meaningful work. Making meaningful work isn’t about drama or titling yourself a “fine art photographer” or adopting a certain level of outer gloss. It’s about digging deep, asking questions, and then using the tools you have at hand to answer them.
So, I’m teaching a class about it.
If you’re in Greenville, SC on March 7th, sign up for my in-person class The Definitive Guide to Making A Totally Awesome Photo Project where I want to help you pull the threads of the life in order to make a collection of work that has something to say.
Sign Up Here!
and speaking of photo projects…
I Want To Send You A Mystery Postcard Poem!
In addition to the my 365 Project Daily Postcard Poems, I’m now sending Mystery Postcard Poems! If you purchase one, you will get a random one-of-one photo postcard with a special poem on it! I’ve been hearing from a lot of people not having a chance to grab one of the dailies, so I wanted to offer another route to getting a fun postcard poem.
Good news! If you’re outside of the US you’re able to participate! It’s very easy to send a postcard overseas, so unlike the Zine, it won’t be a problem to send wherever you are.